The Sicillian Prince
by Evelyn Mavelle
Summary: [ Sister story to The Whole World's a Stage. ] After the assassination of his father, Giovanni Trey, Vanitas struggles to gain respect of Giovanni's followers. He refuses to let his father's empire fall, but is he prepared for the ultimate consequences and sacrifices? [ Ratings will change due to death, gore, drug-use, future sex scenes. ]


**The Sicilian Prince**

**Chapter One**

Van Giovanni Trey was a good child. He grew up in a mob family. His father was a mob leader, and his mother just so happened to be a mob princess. Growing up, though, was a little hard. He had been moved in with his mother, who didn't live with her husband. He wanted to keep them out of as much trouble as he possibly could. And he did such a great job with it too.

Van had messy, jet black hair, and unusual colored eyes. They were gold. Rare they were. He preferred to be called Van, but his mother loved to call him her little dinosaur. His little sister lived with them as well. Her name was Serah Audri Trey, and he was very protective of her. The two were practically inseparable.

However, when Van was eleven, life turned for the worse for him. He had been on his way to meet up with his father at a hotel when the sirens had sounded. He hadn't thought much of it, until he was down the street from the hotel. Hearing the sirens. Seeing the flashing lights, he took off, and found his way to the hotel. Standing in front of the building, he felt his world crash down around him, seeing his father dead in the chair, along with a few other civilians.

Now fifteen, Van found himself standing before his father's grave, anger boiling in tormented golden eyes. How many times had he been here? And how many times had he sworn to this man he'd get revenge on the bastards that had taken his life from him? How many times had he dragged his best friend out, in the middle of the night, even in the freezing cold, to keep him from doing something stupid? He felt a hand rest on his shoulder, and he was jerked from his memories.

"You're bleeding..." The familiar voice said from next to him, and Van blinked, un-clenching his fists, and bringing his hand up to look at his palm. Sure enough, he was bleeding a little. "Van?"

"Fine." Was the simple, calm response. The same one the blond got every time. "Sorry, just a little..."

"Spacy? You tell me that every time. C'mon. Serah's probably worried sick about you. You did promise she could sleep in your room tonight." Van opened his mouth to protest, but was silenced when Logan placed a hand over his mouth. "Nuh uh. No excuses. You talked her into watching that scary movie. She gets to sleep with you tonight. C'mon, she's only eleven, Van."

"God, you suck. You have too good of a memory." Van pointed out, subconsciously grabbing Logan's hand, with the one that wasn't bleeding, starting to walk. Logan frowned a little, looking to Van's other hand with contemplating cerulean irises. Tipping his hat down, he sighed a bit before forcing a smile on his pale lips.

"You should probably wash that before you get home. Don't want Serah freaking out, ya know." He pointed out, looking straight into Van's eyes. He could see it. The calm before the storm. It happened every time they came out this way. Usually Serah or himself could calm the storm before it even hit, but when Van was left alone...

Last time he had been left alone after visiting his father's grave, it left the ravenette with a few scars on his left hand, and a few up his arm from breaking his bedroom window. A moment of silence passed between the two, and Logan went to repeat himself, only to find they were now standing in front of a convenience store. "C'mon. I'll buy some bandages too."

"You don't have to go that far. Just don't want Serah to see any blood. Or your mom. She'll have my head on a silver platter if you go home bloody." Van gave Logan an amused smirk, before walking inside. Almost everyone knew who Van was. He wasn't afraid to throw it around, to point it out. He sure as hell was not afraid to take on anyone who was against his father. Even if he would wind up in the hospital. It didn't scare him.

Logan shook his head, following him in, and towards the back, for the restrooms. He stood next to the door as Van washed the blood from his hand, their eyes meeting in the mirror for a brief second, before Van turned the water off and dried his hands.

As they left, they headed on, towards Van's house. Rounding the corner, there was a squeak, and Van felt someone latch to him, and Logan couldn't help but laugh as the two bodies fell. "Oh my God! Van! Are you okay?!" Wide, amethyst eyes stared down at the boy as a girl with multi-colored hair stared down at him. A groan was her response as Van lifted his head just enough to rub the back of it.

"Yeah, I think I'm alright." He replied, cracking open one eye to take in the arrangement of purple, green and blue hair.

"What's the rush, Celest?" Logan asked, offering a hand to help the girl up. She took it and pulled herself up, before turning to help Van up as well.

"Well, I'm late for curfew." She replied, then frowned. "And so are you two! Why are you wandering around so casually?! Don't you know what happens to children who don't follow curfew?" She asked, wagging a finger at them, in a mockingly motherly way. Van snorted, bringing his hand around to make sure his head wasn't bleeding.

"They either get grounded to their room, or a long scolding, involving the dangers of being out so late." Van told her, raising a brow as he flicked his eyes towards the girl. She gave him a soft smile, knowing of his plans to take over for his father. Which reminded her...

"Oh, yeah! There was something that I overheard." She started, glancing around them, as if making sure there was no one eavesdropping.

"Yeah?" Van asked with a tilted head.

"Yeah. There's going to be a meeting with the heads of each mob family. Will Momma Annalise be going?" She asked, tilting her head. Van shook his head, and Logan looked to his gold-eyed friend, already knowing what was going to become of this conversation.

"No. She swore she was never going back to that business." He informed Celest, who frowned.

"Then, who's going to go? You can't go. You're too young to be head of anything." She said, looking to Logan when he cleared his throat.

"Last I checked, there wasn't an age requirement to run a mob." The blond spoke, drawing in Van's attention. The slightly older boy smirked at this, turning back to Celest.

"I'll be attending in my father's absence. After all, I did swear to him I'd do right by his name."

"Van, that's like a mouse walking into a house full of cats. It's going to end badly." She warned with a slight frown. Van waved her warning off.

"I've been preparing for this, Celest. You have nothing to worry about. Now get home before you get into anymore trouble." Celest let out a light sigh and nodded.

"Alright. You two be careful now, you hear me?!" She asked, reaching up and pulling on one of Van's side spikes, glaring right into his eyes. "I swear to you, if anything happens, I will not let your ass rest in peace." A smirk, followed by a chuckle was her answer.

_I promise, I'll be fine._

That's what everyone around Van had learned that this reaction meant. There was no arguing with it.

-x-

Once they got back to Van's place, he called in, to let Annalise know he was home. They were greeted with a call that dinner was in the kitchen, and Van followed the voice to the front room, telling Logan to go ahead and eat. Coming to a stand still in front of Annalise, said female looked up from her book with a raised brow. "What's up?"

"I heard something interesting from a friend." He started, cocking his head to the side. Annalise had a feeling she knew what was coming, preparing herself for it.

"Oh? What's that?" She asked, patting the spot next to her, and Van dropped to sit down, looking at her.

"The meeting coming up. For the head of each family. Did you know about it?" There was a moment of silence between them, and that was his answer. She was trying to come up with a reason, a story, for not going. "When is it?"

"Yeah, I knew about it." Annalise answered finally. Feeling restless as always, lately the topic of the mob made her that way, she shot from her spot and her eyes remained cemented to her son's face. "The question is: why do you _want_ to know about it?"

Van watched her reactions carefully, frowning a little bit as she turned the questioning around on him. Without hesitation, he replied in a calm voice. "I plan to go in Dad's absence." It was as if it was the most obvious thing on the planet, before his eyes narrowed a little at her, prepared to argue with her until she agreed to tell him everything, and let him go.

And, of course that didn't settle well with her. The placid and composed appearance did nothing for her growing anger. An emotion that often showed face when she felt she had no control. That look in Van' eyes were similar to his father: Giovanni Trey. It was enough to force the mother of two to avert her gaze. But only for a moment.

"I'll be damned if you think you're going to go in your father's place." She said this with such promise in her gaze. Van found himself standing at those words, his eyes narrowing more in defiance, clenching his fists at his sides.

"I'm going, whether you tell me anything or not. I have outside connections." He said in a tone that stated he wasn't lying. "You're not going, so why can't I? I'm not going to sit back and watch my father's empire fall! Everything that he's worked so hard for is already crumbling to the ground. Someone needs to step in and take back over. Someone needs to fix the damage that was already done. And if you're not going to, then I will." There it was; that determined, stubborn side of Van that never backed down from a fight. It was rare for him to stand up against Annalise, but this meant the world to him.

"Do you even know what it means to be in the mafia, Van? Your Father's death should be the end of this!" She lashed out, taking a step towards him with dangerously narrowed eyes. "Your father wouldn't allow this, if he were here right now he wouldn't want this." Her words cut deep, drawing tears to his eyes, which only fueled his anger more. A dirty trick, that's all it was, and he took a daring step forward.

"My father did everything he could to build a mafia that wasn't just crime based! In case you haven't noticed, he did keep a good deal of peace around here! The second he died, this area went to hell!" His eyes narrowed in that dangerous way that Giovanni's did when he was going against, or angered with, an enemy. "I'm not going to let his empire fall anymore than it has. And you can't stop me. One way or another, I'm taking over, and I will make a name for myself." He growled.

"Like hell you are! Your father was a feared criminal! He was one of the most feared! Do you realize how badly his enemies would want you to do this? They would want nothing more than to take you down. Especially if they learn that you're following in your Father's line of work! You'll be considered the laughing stock of New York! You're only fifteen, so what makes you think people are going to start taking you seriously? I love you Van, but you will be a joke." She emphasized the last word that left her lips, each word dripped with conviction.

As each word passed her lips, Van felt his anger boiling, and rising, drifting through his veins knew perfectly well that he wasn't going to be taken seriously at the beginning. Staying silent for a moment, a dark smirk formed on his lips. "And what makes you think I haven't thought about all of this?" His voice was too calm for the look in his eyes. "I've thought about a lot about this, and everything that comes with it. I've thought about how hard it's going to be to get anyone to take me seriously. By the end of the year, I'll be just as feared as Giovanni Gabriel Trey." His tone was calm, yet dark. "Nothing you say or do is going to stop me. I already have people lined up, willing to follow right behind me every step of the way."

"People lined up? A bunch of rookies, I'm sure. No one would follow you without the intent to wipe you from the spot! Clearly you don't understand the dangers that come with the job, otherwise you would think more clearly. You are _not _your father, Van. And, if you make it out alive, it will take you years to get to where he was. Your father ran this organization for _sixteen _years. It took him a very long time to get to where he was, and I can't even tell you how many times he came close to dying. I will not sit back and watch my son jump into something that will get him killed." Annalise told him flatly.

"That's why Leon's willing to help me." He dead-panned. "I have him, Zane, and Logan. And right now, that's all I need. It doesn't matter what you say, Mom, I'm doing this. It's my responsibility to take over from where he left off. To fix what's been messed up. One way or another, I'd be in this position anyway." He told her.

"You are dragging Logan into this? I can only imagine how his father will feel about that." Rolling her eyes to show her true feelings about that. Eyes narrowing into Van' now, "Maybe so, but your father wanted more for you than this life. He wanted you to go to college and do something that wasn't involved with the mafia!" Growling this, she closed her eyes and shook her head to try to ignore that pounding headache. Turning away from him, she paced the floor. If it were possible, she more than likely would have worn it down.

"Even if I asked him not to follow me, do you really think he'd back down? He's my best friend. He's always had my back. And I'll always have his." He shot, watching her as she paced. College. Screw college. Screw school. "I'm one fight away from being kicked out his year. I've been getting into tons of fights _because_ of my name! Why the hell shouldn't I join the mafia?! It's not like I'll have much of a better chance with school!" He paused, then laughed, turning his head towards the kitchen. "Logan! C'mon! Let's go to my room!" He called in, starting towards the kitchen now. It didn't matter what she had to say, Van wasn't going to back down.

Logan came into the front room with a noodle hanging from his mouth, glancing between the two. He had heard them arguing in the kitchen, but the tension in the room was a lot thicker than he thought. Swallowing the noodle, he opened his mouth, only to be silenced by Annalise. "Logan, I think it's time you went home." Her tone was too calm, and he nodded, glancing to Van.

"I'll call you in the morning." He said, nodding, before ducking out.

Annalise's lip pursed at the interruption but bit back anything that she had planned to say. When Logan dispersed, she turned back to Van. "I don't approve of what you're doing, and I know that locking you in your room won't stop you either." She knew better than that, since he was her and Giovanni's son.

At least she was finally getting it, Van thought this as he looked to his mother once more. She wasn't going to be able to stop him from doing what he wants to do. "Good. I'm sorry you don't approve, but this is something that I have to do." He said, somewhat calmer than he had been a few seconds ago. "There's nothing else to say about this." He then added.

Annalise had to know when she was in defeat. And, this is it. As a mother, she hated not being more in control of her kid's lives, but she knew that it would only drive them farther away. Taking a step forward, she grabbed him by the ear and yanked it. "Just don't get killed, alright? If you die, then I'm going to make damn sure to bring you back and kill you myself. You understand me?"

Van tensed up a little as she walked up to him, before yelping, flailing his arms a little, closing his eye on the side where she had grabbed his ear. "Ouch! Alright, alright! I swear." He assured her. Somehow, this gesture seemed to kill any tension he felt towards her. Whether it went the same with her was unknown to him. He was just relieved he didn't have to argue with her anymore. Reaching up, though, he grabbed her wrist loosely, offering a weak smile to her. "Don't worry. I am yours and Giovanni's son. Have a little more faith in me."

Letting go, her eyes showed that she still was uncertain of how she planned on dealing with this. But, she nodded. "You're right. But, I mean it. I swear I will step in if you so much as get yourself in an unrepairable state. You better believe that I will."

"Trust me, I believe it." He assured her, letting out a light sigh, rubbing at his ear. At that moment, his stomach decided to growl, and he remembered that he had promised to let Serah camp in his room tonight. "Hey, Mom, is Serah still awake?" He then asked, starting for the kitchen, as if the previous conversation hadn't happened. That was just how he was. It was easy for him to pretend like that.

"You know Serah, always going to bed early so it doesn't effect her performance in school." Annalise sighed softly. "You can check, she was worried about you earlier, and probably still is." Nodding to this, Van walked from the front room, and started up the stairs, poking his head into Serah's room.

Not there.

With a shrug, he walked to his room, not surprised at all to see his little sister sleeping in his bed. With a small smile, he stepped into the walk-in closet, and changed into a pair of black and red plaid pajama pants, before crawling into bed, careful as to not wake her, before placing a soft kiss on her forehead, murmuring a quiet promise that everything would be perfectly fine.

He then laid down and closed his eyes, falling asleep in no time.

_**To be continued~.**_

**A/N;** _Alrighty! Here's the first chapter for 'The Sicilian Prince'. A sister story to 'The Whole World's A Stage'. We do hope you enjoy it every step of the way. I know I'm going to have a bit of fun writing for it! :) For every chapter written, there will be a review corner. To thank each and every one of you that review. Suggestions are more than welcome. It's not necessary that you read 'The Whole World's A Stage' to get this one, but I do recommend it if you enjoy a good angsty-ish Clack Love Story._

_As a belated note, here are the disclaimers. Serah is a name we did jack from Final Fantasy XIII, however, the girl herself is an original character created by Evelyn. We do not own any version of Kingdom Hearts, and we make no money off of any of this. Hell, we don't own anything Square Enix (save for a couple of the games. That's it. We hold no rights to any of it)._

_A few original characters of ours will pop up, and will be noted at the end of the chapter. Use of any of our original characters without our permission is strictly forbidden. If given persmission (but I don't see why you'd want to), you must credit us, and send a link to anything that mentions them; Stories, fanart, or anything else._

_That Is All._

_**-Panda-**_


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